Heartbreak Girl // A.F.I

15

Kelsey's POV // New Haven, Connecticut

When the caller ID pops up on my phone, I nearly drop my phone on the floor out of shock. Oh my god.

"Ashton?" I say, almost in disbelief. 

"Hey, Kels," He says, and I have to sit down.

"How are you? How are things? I haven't heard from you in so long," I say, making the last part a little more emotional than I meant to make it sound. 

"Oh, you know. Just living the dream, living the single life now, all of that," He says with a laugh, and it instantly makes me feel better. 

"I know what you mean, haha. Not that I don't like hearing from you, but was there a reason you called? Is everything okay?" 

"Oh yeah, I was just calling because I know you told Cal you won't be able to come to the show because of work...but we would really like you to come if you can make it work. I would really like to have you there, it's been so long since I've seen you...I missed you. Plus, I think it would be nice to give yourself a night off. From what Calum says, you've been working your ass off, and I know you like seeing us perform..." He says, waiting for my response. Hearing him say the words "I missed you" made me really emotional, and the fact that he wants me to come...means a lot. I do have a question for him, though. 

"I will check with my boss and see if I can get one or both of the nights off since I know y'all are playing two shows here. I've missed you a lot too...but can I just ask you a question? And I want you to be one hundred percent honest with me," I say. He pauses for a moment.

"Fire away," He says after a while. 

"Why did you ignore me for so long? I definitely understand why we distanced ourselves at first, and after you started dating Becca, but I would reach out and you wouldn't respond at all, with no explanation, and that really hurt as your friend," I confess. He pauses again and seems to be thinking. 

"I....I have an explanation for part of it, but it's mostly inexcusable that I did that. When we first broke up, I wanted to respect your boundaries, because I could tell you didn't want to talk for a while, which was completely understandable. And then Becca...she wasn't comfortable with me being around you or even texting you, even though most of you and I's history was as friends, but I still kind of understand that, even though it was a little extreme,"

"I definitely get that, too."

"But after she and I broke up, I just...I knew you were doing good despite us not talking and I didn't want to be the one to ruin that. And I know I should've just reached out and asked, I know that and that's what was inexcusable, I'm so sorry." He says, and I can tell his apology is really genuine. He's matured so much in the time that we've been apart. 

"You're fine, I'm just glad to hear from you now. Thank you," I say, and we end up talking on the phone for almost an hour before I realize the time. 

"Ash, I gotta head out to work, okay? I still need to check with my boss, but I have a feeling that I'll see you really soon," I say with a smile on my face.

"Bye Kels, have a good day," He says.

"Right back at ya." 

Ashton's POV // Uncasville, Connecticut

Getting to hear from her honestly made me feel so much better. Knowing that she's not upset, she's not angry, and that she understands...honestly shocks me, but in a good way. And hearing that she might be able to come to the show on Friday? The guys will be so excited to hear that. I come off of the balcony and Luke, Calum, and Michael are waiting for me. 

"Damn, did the call go well? Another 10 minutes and we would've had to drag your ass off that balcony and in the car. We have a station to be at in about 30 minutes," Michael asks.

"Yeah, it actually went really well. We talked through our situation and got to catch up, and it looks like she is going to try really hard to get not just one, but two days off to come and see us both nights," I tell the guys, and they seem really excited.

"Finally all of us can be together again, thank god," Luke says in relief. 

"It's really been a long time coming, that's for sure," Calum agrees. After a while, we head off to the radio station, and I can't stop thinking about how good it feels to finally have all of that cleared up.

Just a few days.